Archive for the ‘Personal Revelations’ Category

“Count your blessings” is a timeless adage that somehow never seems relevant until we go through a crisis. Right now, I feel immensely blessed.

My blessings have arrived in an assortment of odd shapes and sizes. Here are a few:

My mother is a rare blessing. I wonder how she can tolerate me and stand by me through my most difficult times. I sometimes take her rock-steady support for granted. She is “unconditional acceptance” personified. She has taught me how to love unconditionally. She’s taught me kindness. She has taught me to have faith in trying circumstances. In fact, I think I have inherited all my virtues from her. I feel so blessed to have such a mom.

Three more grand blessings of my life are my older siblings, who have never questioned me on my decisions, however much they disagreed with them. They respect me for my talents, encourage me to pursue my dreams and allow me the space to be my weird self. I feel so blessed to have such siblings.

My friends, so many of them, are also my treasured blessings — always ready to listen without prejudice and accept me with my human fallibilities. Sometimes, they even fight with me just so that they can stop me from making a mistake! I feel so blessed to have such friends.

My teachers, many of who I have never even met, are my most revered blessings: Wayne Dyer, Robert Fulghum, Michael Crichton, Linda Goodman, Paulo Coelho, Neale Donald Walsh, M Scott Peck, Hugh Prather, and so many more, whose writings have inspired me, guided me, and made me wiser through the years. I feel so blessed to have such teachers.

My victimisers (yes, you read that right) are also my valued blessings. Without those who caused me pain and suffering, I wouldn’t have learned anything, and my soul would not have got the opportunity to grow as much as it did. I am grateful to them for the difficulties they brought into my life. I feel so blessed to have such adversaries.

I call my colleagues — subordinates, peers and bosses, and my business associates — my the commercial blessings. They have taught me, mostly unknowingly, many a lesson in the area of work ethic. I feel so blessed to have such colleagues.

Then there are strangers and acquaintances, who, in their ordinary interactions with me, remind me of the universal blessing that I am always bestowed and protected with. I feel so blessed to be on this planet.

My lifespan is not eighty or ninety
…but eternity
‘Cos I am an aspect of God’s beauty
…and infinity

Today is my birthday and I turn 25 yet again. When I tell people that I stopped growing at 25, they think I am either joking or have lost my marbles. Neither is true. The truth is I choose to be 25 and I know I can.

The great advantage of such a choice is because our bodies are subservient to our minds, when I choose to be 25 in my mind, my body looks and behaves like 25. Isn’t that great? Also, someday I may decide to start growing. But right now I am happy being 25 and will continue to be so for a few more years.

On a more serious note, chronological age doesn’t apply to me anymore, because time is no more a recognisable factor in my life. While in everyday affairs, time has its significance, and it will continue to do so till I live and interact with others, the idea of life being time-bound does not appeal to me. I can’t get myself to do everything according to a designated time-table. I am an eternal soul disguised as a human being. My lifespan is eternity… Because, my life is not enclosed in birth and death—they just happen to be two milestones in my eternal life.

Oliver Herford said: “Modesty is the gentle art of enhancing your charm by pretending not to be aware of it.” I have always believed that modesty is pretentious. Acting modest is like pretending to be less than what you really are. However, I do believe in humility, which should not be confused with modesty. Modesty consists of belittling one’s own talents and accomplishments for the sake of receiving praise or adulation from others.

Modesty often poses as humility. But such humility is false as it is usually social in context and hence external. True humility, on the other hand, is an acknowledgement to the self of our limitations and hence it is an internal concept.

I am aware of my gifts, talents, abilities and I see no reason why I shouldn’t declare them as such. At the same time, I am also aware of my weaknesses and do not mind acknowledging it to self and others. Being humble is being authentic to self. Being modest is being inauthentic to others. C.S Lewis once said, “Perfect humility dispenses with modesty.” So aim for perfect humility.

I am back after a gap of 11 days. It feels like such a long time…I missed writing. But the time I spent away was in Switzerland, so no complains 🙂
I feel like writing about my experiences in paradise…and maybe I will, someday soon. But I also know that words cannot describe the beauty of the Alps — an endless string of lakes, mountains and green pastures, so beautifully maintained that it’s difficult to believe your eyes. Across the length and breadth, wherever I went, it was awe-inspiring.

During my 9 day visit, I stayed in Luzern, but travelled to Zurich, Basel, Lugano, Interlaken, Montreo and Olten.Of course I also visited Mt Titlis, Mt. Pilatus, Rhine Falls, Trümmelbach Falls (Europe’s wildest glacier canyon), and Murren village. Each excursion was worth every franc spent. So too the first hand experience of Swiss precision in every aspect of life.

As you can see, I am very impressed by Switzerland. But I also wonder how can an entire country be so exquisitely perfect??